The Voters Have Spoken: EA Is Your Worst Company In America For 2012!

Whether it’s on a console, a PC, a smartphone or tablet, hundreds of millions of people play video games every day. Yet most mainstream media covers the industry the same way it treats adult dodge ball leagues and cat fashion shows (both noble ventures, but neither of them multi-billion dollar industries). And the only time you hear legislators discuss video games is when some politician decries them as the death knell for all things righteous in the world (hint: they’re not). Now, after years of being ignored and relegated to steerage, game-players have voted to send a message to Electronic Arts and the gaming business as a whole: Stop treating your loyal customers like crap.

After more than 250,000 votes, Consumerist readers ultimately decided that the type of greed exhibited by EA, which is supposed to be making the world a more fun place, is worse than Bank of America’s avarice, which some would argue is the entire point of operating a bank.

To those who might sneer at something as “non-essential” as a video game company winning the Worst Company In America vote: It’s that exact kind of attitude that allows people to ignore the complaints as companies like EA to nickel and dime consumers to death.

For years, while movies and music became more affordable and publishers piled on bonus content — or multiple modes of delivery — as added value to entice customers to buy, video games have continued to be priced like premium goods.

There have even been numerous accusations that EA and its ilk deliberately hold back game content with the sole intent of charging a fee for it at a later date. It’s one thing to support a game with new content that is worth the price. It’s another to put out an inferior — and occasionally broken — product with the mindset of “ah, we’ll fix it later and make some money for doing so.”

New, independent game companies do pop up all the time, but the cost of entering the market has historically been too expensive, making these indie innovators prime targets for acquisition by mega-publishers like EA. Our hope is that the growth of app-based gaming and downloadable games will continue to make it easier for developers to get their products out without the backing of companies that don’t care a lick about the people who fork over their cash.

Oh well, Worst Company In America 2012 is officially in the books. All that’s left to do is send off the Golden Poo to EA.

Traditionally, the Poo has been delivered on its little red pillow. But this year, we’ll give EA three different color options for its pillow, though in the end it’s still the same old Poo.

Thanks again to everyone who voted. See you all again in about 49 weeks!

I dunno. I’ve seen a lot more of that kind of butthurt attitude from the BofA backers in this thread. They seem to be throwing a tantrum because a company that provides something they don’t care about won over their favored horse. Who cares about the actual practices of the company and the effect it’s having on its entire industry. They make games and thus do not deserve to even be mentioned in the same sentence as BofA and Comcast.

I don’t care what they make. I totally understand that they garner customer dissatisfaction. I can even hear an argument on how they can take on Comcast. But no one here can name one thing they’ve done that’s ruined someone’s life. BofA has a whole list.

Yes, BofA has ruined people’s lives, but mainly from sheer ineptitude. EA is actively trying to destroy an entire industry. What would you consider a worse company: one that makes massive mistakes because of bad programming of their systems, and is so big that it becomes unwieldy, or one that is intentionally and maliciously changing how an entire industry works to the detriment of its customers and in favor of the company? I go for malicious every time.

For a few hours every day? Every week? Every month? Every year? What’s the timeframe? If you play for a few hours a month then no big deal but I don’t think an “adult” spends hundreds or even thousands of dollars on games to just play “for a few hours.”

Yup. I’m no fan of EA, but if they screw you over on a glitchy game, bad servers, or nickel and dime DLC you might be out $60 you spent on a full price game. Lesson learned…

BofA screwing you over usually means retaining counsel, possibly having a zero balance (oops!) in your account for days, having the sheriff come and kick you out of a paid for home, and other life altering consequences. Not even close.

Plus some people have ended up as BofA mortgage customers through no fault of their own. You can avoid EA if you want to and still have plenty of gaming options.

And the slanderous marketing campaigns such as heavily implying the provision of prostitutes to winners of a sweepstakes, hiring fake religious protesters and supporting the mindset of “if your parents say no, it’s cool” while simultaneously telling those parents “you should hate this” which inevitably leads to kids disobeying or resenting their parents?

Don’t forget that. I think attempts to psychologically screw an entire generation is a pretty high crime too.

There are two ways to royally screw up. You can cause an immediate crisis or you can set back socioeconomic progress for a few decades. Both are pretty bad, I’d say.

My take is the WCIA voting is now lacking in both honesty and integrity, having been hijacked by shills within the WCIA nominees.

Given GameStop’s presence in the WCIA, it isn’t much of a stretch to assume (as ClemsonEE said) they set up a Richard J. Dailey style zombie voting system targeting both EA and big-box competitors such as Walmart.

In 2013, Consumerist should enact the same standards as governmental elections and limit voting rights only to individuals who have been a registered Consumerist member for at least 30 days prior to the first round of voting. This would level the playing field and cut down of the number of companies and shills setting up multiple Consumerist accounts in an attempt to rig the results.

I’d like to see the number of total votes received next to the percentages to see the amount of total votes in the EA match-ups compared to other match ups. If the number of votes are a lot higher then I’d probably question them.

I think a lot of it has to do with choice. You don’t like B of A? There are other banks. Don’t like AT & T? There are other phone/internet companies. Don’t like EA? Well, you could buy other games. Problem is, you like the GAMES they put out, and not their shady-assed tactics (handing out broken video games, DRM, ZERO customer service or tech help).

It’s a matter of contract theory regressing back to status. That sucks. You can’t really boycott EA and still be satisfied without breaking the law (pirating). You can boycott the others and still get banking/internet & cell service.

By the truckloads… EA has probably shut down more small development houses than any of the other 3rd parties combined. Somehow I think there are more of those people around than the dozen or so homeowners whose homes were seized by BofA when they had no right. The foreclosures may outweigh the devs, but probably not by a wide margin.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

Companies like BoA, PayPal, Comcast, Walmart, etc all just let out a sigh of relief as any credibility that this competition once had is now completely gone. They don’t even have to really pay attention to it any more because of this.

Yes clearly BoA forces people to take out loans there is no way they can afford just with the intent of getting the joy of loosing money on foreclosure. You are a moron, BoA does not destroy lives, people being stupid cause them to get their lives messed up by not actually understanding and managing their finances.

Though I think BoA should have won, but more because of their crappy customer service, massive attempts at greed to nickle and dime people with fees….. But being a crappy company that is greedy really is not destroying lives, unless getting charged a $5 monthly fee is enough to destroy your life, in which case that is something they did do

Apparently you’ve missed the stories of BOA foreclosing on the wrong property, foreclosing on properties that are paid for, and foreclosing on properties that never had a mortgage at all. Try again loser.

You are a moron, BoA does destroy lives. They foreclose on homes they don’t even hold mortgages on, they foreclose on paid off homes. It’s not all about people who behaved badly, spent more than they could afford, and made bad decisions.

But if you could get your head out of game world, you would already know that.

All those houses wrongly foreclosed on had no impact on the people who legally owned them and were making payments on time. Not to mention the shady, half-assed way the bank was reviewing mortgages. That all pales into comparison to a game company that supported draconian rules on IPs.

BoA has time and again managed to destroy the lives of non-customers by foreclosing on homes they have no legal right to, seizing wrong houses, etc. How can you blame ANY of these sorts of things on “people being stupid”?

1. Able to sue for reimbursement
2. BOA backed off after it became apparent to them it was an error
3. BOA backed off after it became apparent to them it was an error
4. Able to sue for reimbursement
5. Able to sue for reimbursement.

In every case, BOA either rectified the situation or the OP at least has recourse in which they’ll be able to recover over and above what they lost. Hardly what I would call “destroying lives”.

Where EA’s actions are leaving tens of thousand laid off with those left working in the gaming industry working under deplorable conditions. Those laid off may have years of unmarketable experience do to the actions of EA – with EA being the only game in town they set the rules. EA may not affect you but it does *actually* ruin lives.

Can you link the article showing that large number of layoffs? I tried to Google for it but only found a mention of 600 people being let go.

More to the point, a company laying people off is not a consumer issue which is what this competition is about.

BOA was essentially stealing homes that either were paid for or had absolutely nothing to do with them, and while suing is indeed an option, caps, delays and legal costs does not mean those wrongs are righted in anything resembling a suitable manner.

I have seen the articles, problem is I look further back at people getting themselves into the situation in the first place. Just because BoA is not bailing you out of the situation that you got yourself into does not mean they ruined your life. It is not their job to save you from your own stupidity…. if you took out a loan or did something stupid it is your fault and the fallout is your fault, not the banks.

There is this thing called personal responsibility and most people avoid it by blaming others for their problems. I have not seen one case on this site, with the possible exception of the guy loosing $25K (and I still want to see more info on that), where BoA actually screwed someone to the point their lives were ruined. I see people made dumb choices and expect the bank to bail them out and then blame the bank (and not just BoA) for their problems

Or maybe when BofA foreclosed on a house that it didn’t own. Or when they foreclose on houses that have been paid off. Or sending people to collections for accounts that were paid off. Or Cutting 30,000 jobs. Or creating fake documents to foreclose on properties.

Seriously you are either stupid or too lazy to look if you think BofA hasn’t royally screwed over thousands of people, and at least mistreated hundreds of thousands more. As far as the bad mortgages go, they, along with the rest of the banks, are half in blame for giving them out in first place. They knew the loans were toxic but gave them out anyway, which has been shown in leaked communications

You’re being too hard on BofA…they just represent the omnipresent Darwinian forces that are at play in our financial sector. By weeding out the weak – by driving them to starvation or suicide – they protect the gene pool and ensure that only the strong will live to pass on their genetic heritage.

Not everyone is financially savvy so they tend to rely upon the advice of the “expert”. Problem is when the expert flat out lies to you, falsifies loan information or even tells the applicant that it’s okay state a higher income than you actually make, then takes your mortgage, chops it up into tranches, separates the cream, takes the chicken sh*t that is left over and magically turns it into chicken salad through rating agencies that they pay for, then sells you that chicken sh*t in the form of mortgage backed securities, then when the market tanks because of their actions and you get your home taken away from you because you followed their advice.

I would rather buy a few games for $60 then realize I was screwed and never deal with EA again than go through what I mentioned above and if you think that EA screwing some people over video games is worse than what Bunk of America did not only to Americans but to the entire world then i’m afraid you’re beyond hope.

They just try to screw people in general. My wife and I who both have near perfect credit tried to refinance our BoA mortgage only to be turned down since we didn’t have equity in the house according to them. Their appraiser just drove by and then compared us to a smaller house with less amenities that was an obvious refurb job. Didn’t care that we had just done a 20k kitchen remodel or put in a new bathroom. Wouldn’t do an interior inspection. Fast-forward a year we just closed with our local credit union who came in saw the house and appraised it 30% than BoA with plenty of equity to justify a refinance. Terms were not as good as BoA but will still be saving tens of thousands of dollars. BoA is out a client for life.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

There are two ways to screw up immeasurably as a company. You can either destroy some lives or ensure that an entire face of reality is scarred and ruined for decades to come, such as by causing parents to not only look down upon, but despise games through idiotic marketing schemes like “Sin to Win.”

This comment wins. I used to love the 2K franchise, as it was better than Madden every year and cost less. So of course EA had to sign that fucking exclusivity deal. If you can’t beat the competition, sabotage it.

Yep. What a joke. I always considered the WCIA contest to be light-hearted, but this just makes it lame. Sure, EA is bad, but comparable to some of the other companies that got knocked out. It’s pretty obvious this poll was skewed by people who don‚Äôt read The Consumerist. EA winning really weakens the message.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

Sorry that I don’t care about other people who took out bigger mortgages than they could afford and lost their house. God forbid BoA foreclose on people who won’t pay the money they legally agreed to pay.

I think this is the proper solution. BofA is extremely bad, but the way the Consumerist readership thinks, they’d win every year, with Comcast getting second place. That would get boring quick. We just need to automatically award BofA the first place trophy every year, and have the brackets be for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th places.

This vote was pasted all over various gaming communities. Communities that loath EA and other big publishers in the gaming world. Those communities act as a hive mind – and I’m they did on this vote. Sort of a sad statement that a company that releases overpriced, underwhelming games wins over a company that doesn’t seem to care much about the lives they’ve turned completely upside down.

Knowing BofA, they’ll be upset finishing second – then they’ll forclose on EA.

Obviously the “people” have spoken, and I do agree EA engages in rampantly anti-consumer behavior. Still, I personally just can’t consider them the WCIA when BofA negatively affects basic quality of life things–like having a home. EA is purely a “luxury” company, in my book.

Yeah, seriously. It’s pretty obvious internet polls aren’t random samplings–they may or may not be representative of the whole (In this case, America). I wasn’t trying to imply the results were any more or less valid than any other ‘net poll, but in this context I was referencing the fact most people in America weren’t polled and I’m willing to wager there were a fair number of international votes.

I’m kind of amazed someone could take that and twist it into a statement about the lack of validity of an internet poll, but one shouldn’t underestimate the internet, I suppose.

That’s exactly what happened. I knew once they started advocating for their readers to vote in this poll, they were going to screw it up. I don’t think B of A is the worse company in America, but it is certainly worse than freaking EA Games.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

BofA has done terrible things, but to those who think that EA is not worse, remember that when BofA forecloses on a person’s house, they ultimately lose the fight. When EA locks a user out of content they paid for, or when they try to destroy the concept of first sale, they are lauded by their peers and followed for making good business sense. BofA is may be more evil, but EA is more insidious.

Yes, arranged by EA when they acted like a crap company for gamers worldwide. I agree that BofA has a greater ability to put its customers (and the few unfortunates who had no dealings with them) in a hole, but EA has a much broader brush even if the colors aren’t as deep.

I didn’t vote on any of these companies, but I don’t think the results are a sham just because the largest 3rd party publisher in the world won it.

The gaming blogs/forums picked it up. From there, it was history, and pointless for anyone not reading those sites to bother voting. People will try to present some justification, but when EA beats everybody 2:1, there is not any. EA has done some shady stuff for many years, but calling them the worst company in America is too far a stretch for anyone to say with a straight face.

Just goes to show you: when you get a lot of people who have a lot of free time to spend online riled up about something and point them toward an effort-free online means of expressing their frustration, they can move mountains.

Or stuff votes, I guess. Same difference. Looking forward to seeing Madden 2013 and Mass Effect 4 set new sales and DLC records as this accolade falls meaninglessly by the wayside in the face of gamers’ uncontrollable need for whatever the games industry says they need.

Oh, and if all the people BoA screwed still had homes to use the Internet from, things might have gone differently.

This is hilarious. I voted for EA up until the last round where I voted for BoA, but I did secretly hope EA would win. They’re a one-shot and probably won’t be back next year but they DO deserve this award at least once.

That a non-monopoly non-essential entertainment company trumps companies that have virtual monopolies (Ticketmaster, Paypal, Comcast), or who have the power to crash the US or even world economy (BOA), and that several companies that are far worse (Goldman Sachs, AIG, Monsanto, BP) weren’t even nominated, just shows how utterly ridiculous and unbelievable this poll has gotten.

Enjoy your win gamers. I’m sure EA is going to cry themselves to sleep at night as you keep CHOOSING to give them your money, when there’s plenty of other major publishers and indie studios out there to pick from, and then complaining about them.

I’m sure BofA is going to cry themselves to sleep at night as you keep CHOOSING to give them your money, when there’s plenty of other major banks and credit unions out there to pick from, and then complaining about them.

No one will answer this for me – is it actually possible to change who holds your mortgage? I mean, ASIDE from it being passed from bank to bank like a used football after you tried to do the consciencious thing and originally took the loan out from a small local bank.

When you get your mortgage through someone other than BofA, and through no fault of yours it is sold off to BofA, what are you supposed to do? Go out and refinance again and again just to stay out of BofA’s clutches?

Consumerist ought to look into ways to prevent ballot box stuffing by particular interests in the future. Maybe a system that allows only people who had a Consumerist account prior to the start of the WCIA competition to vote.

“Enjoy your win gamers. I’m sure EA is going to cry themselves to sleep at night as you keep CHOOSING to give them your money, when there’s plenty of other major publishers and indie studios out there to pick from, and then complaining about them”

Yes, because a string of strong finishes in the WCIA by Bank of America has certainly forced them to see the error of their ways and improve the way they do business, right?

“That a non-monopoly non-essential entertainment company trumps companies that have virtual monopolies (Ticketmaster, Paypal, Comcast), or who have the power to crash the US or even world economy (BOA), and that several companies that are far worse (Goldman Sachs, AIG, Monsanto, BP) weren’t even nominated, just shows how utterly ridiculous and unbelievable this poll has gotten.”

I cannot help but support this statement. People need to re-evaluate their priorities if a video game company that they choose to purchase services from is worse than a bank (which, although may have been a choice, is still worse than EA in every sense possible), a Financial Institution that operates like a bank (and a perpetual monopoly) without the oversight of one (That would be PayPal), and multiple monopoly’s including one that is a basic service provider (Phone, Cable, Internet – Comcast).

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

Or rather, gamers screwed over by EA vs customers that have been screwed over by BofA. Hmm…if more people are screwed over by a company than another company…maybe said company deserve “Worst Company in America”!

I whole hardheartedly agree, the WCIA is here for that reason, if EA didnt have so many people using there services and screwing over there customers with said services BofA would have won or another company would have won. Look at it this way, replace EA with Valve, but oh wait valve doesn’t play as many sneaky games with its customers that’s why they are not on the list, they didn’t have the numbers. The same could be said true for my personal bank. Its numbers and EA had more.

This probably comes down to more people having more direct interaction with EA. While BofA is certainly evil and has harmed all of us, that harm is indirect. The threat is indirect. Therefore, most of the objection to them would be political rather than on direct greivances.

How many people fear BofA doing something stupid with their paid off mortgage versus people that have been screwed directly by EA.

A lot of what BofA does “happens to other people”. Also, a lot of the hysteria around Countrywide/BofA helping cause a 2nd Great Depression has abated somewhat.

Wow. I’ve never even heard of EA before this. Then again, I don’t spend any of my precious free time playing video games. Another confirmation that I must be getting old.

Still, I honestly cannot see how a company that is terrible to consumers of optional products is worse than a company that is terrible to consumers of what is considered an essential service (at least in a first world economy).

Loans are just as optional, you don’t have to get a lone to buy something. Don’t get me wrong though, I still think BofA deserves a golden poo but both companies are a choice and it would seem EA affects more people then BofA.

This. When I was in college and they added a bank to the campus it was Bank of America. I had the option and was enticed to put my money with them and get a credit card. I declined. I knew better.

The only time a consumer has to deal with Bank of America is when their loan is resold to BoA. Anyone voluntarily doing business with them deserves being screwed. BoA is no worse than Citigroup and their behavior is a model for their entire industry.

EA, however, is pioneering ways to screw with their customers and other companies will follow suit based on the experiment. EA’s practices are far worse, once you take them out of your “it’s just a video game company.”

As has been pointed out by many other commenters, sometimes people don’t have a choice in dealing with BOA – mortgages get bought and sold every day, and BOA has foreclosed on far too many homes it never held the mortgage for in the first place. Nice try, though.

If being fed-up with a company single-handedly fucking over what is not just my hobby, but an emerging art form that I love means that I’m entitled, then call me the biggest entitled son-of-a-bitch ever.

You’re seriously arguing a crappy video game ending and online passes are at the same scale as serial mortgage fraud?

Really?

I play video games. A LOT. Even competitively at times. I’m a known EA hater among my gamer friends. I’ve stopped buying EA games due to how much EA sucks several years ago. However, unlike the typical video game whiner, I’m aware of the world outside of video games and would never once consider EA to be anywhere near the evilness of BofA. Unless I find their games are developed by 6-year-old Chinese orphan slaving 20-hour workdays while repeatedly beaten by their EA overlords.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

Oh I get it now. One of the largest banks in the world, who at this point doesn’t need to care about treating their customers right because they already have your money and your future money, were already voted as the worst company in America.

So to distract ourselves from this horrible horrible state of affairs of corporate greed and people holding your money hostage because they can, we flock to distractions, for the chance of having a smile, of really enjoying something, ANYTHING. And one of the biggest entertainment companies decides to capitalize on our sadness and get lazy, draining us of even more money just to make sure we get a working product, and an enjoyable entertainment experience.

We fought for Origin, the ones who brought us Ultima and Wing Commander.
We fought for Bullfrog, the creators of Populous, Dungeon Keeper, and Theme Park.
We fought for Maxis, the powerful minds who brought us the entire simulation genre.
We fought for Westwood, designers of Command and Conquer.
We fought for Bioware, writers and weavers of adventures like Knights of the Old Republic and Baldur’s Gate.

Bank of America might be more evil than EA. They might have kicked people out of their houses. They might have perpetuated an international financial crisis. However, none of this makes EA’s crimes less horrible. Today, we made the world take notice.

I know you’re angry because people hijacked your site about crying babies in restaurants and saving dimes by clipping coupons to make a point about how shitty our industry has become. We promise, next year we’ll leave you guys alone.

BoA has definitely done way worse things to humanity than EA. They took advantage of a lot of Americans and turned some families to the streets for defaulting on terrible loans, all the while the bank’s executives were rewarding themselves for doing the worst jobs humanly possible.

At the same time, in the past year EA dove head-first into some seriously disgusting territory when it comes to the monetization of their products, release-day DLC, and a practice of releasing an inferior or incomplete product in favor of meeting a marketing deadline. In the end, hopefully both companies will start getting their act together and not be included in this contest next year. In a perfect world, that is…

This site has been on a steady decline for the last couple of years and I’ve visited less and less for some time now, but this is just awful. A site that’s supposed to represent the consumer chooses a video game company as the worst company in America? Terrible.

I liked this part of the article, you have to admit the do have a rather large point.

We’re sure that British Petroleum, AIG, Philip Morris, and Halliburton are all relieved they weren’t nominated this year. We’re going to continue making award-winning games and services played by more than 300 million people worldwide.

The worst part of this is that every single devious, greedy, evil thing EA has done has been fully supported by its customers — the gamers. The gamers simply lack the rudimentary intelligence required to grasp that EA would do and could do NONE of this if they simply stopped making money off it.

Gamers have repeatedly rewarded EA for bad behavior. They’re doing it today — all day, just like they do every day. So of course EA will keep right on doing what they do — they’d be crazy not to.

So, pathetically stupid gamers: YOU made EA everything it is. YOU paid for it, idiots. If you’d only had the minimal self-discipline required to stop buying their products, none of this would have happened. But you’re not only stupid, you lack self-control and patience. Frankly, I hope EA rips you off as many times as possible, because you deserve to suffer for your stupidity.

Contrast with the BoA, for example, which has most emphatically not been repeatedly
encouraged by its customers to screw them over, but does so simply because — in the
contemporary US — those with money, power and fame don’t need to concern themselves
with following the law because the rules are different for them.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

The attitude of the other commentors on this site conveys the exact problem. EA is destroying the video gaming industry and no one that isn’t a gamer gives a damn because in their isolated little world “gaming isn’t important”.

Just remember that while EA doesn’t have the reach of BOA, they are destroying lives too. Their anti-competitive behavior leaves people jobless and they run what employees are left into the ground by forcing them to work overly excessive hours.

It’s funny how when some unknown Chinese worker at Foxconn is working 70 hrs/wk, the commentors here are quick to decry it as “slavery” and “inhumane” but if it is a domestic company that even admits to working employees 80-120/hrs week no one even blinks. After all, “gaming isn’t important” and maybe it’s there fault for “not getting a real job” despite the fact that the industry was once though to be one that could eventually rival the likes of Hollywood.

But…gaming ISN’T important. It’s only important to an extremely small subset of the population. I play games, but I’d never self-identify as a “gamer” because it’s ridiculous to base your identity on a hobby.

And this isn’t even a hobby with any intrinsic value. Video games are designed to hook you and eat up as much of your time as possible, offering nothing in return. How many Einsteins, Curies, Hemingways and Shakespeares have we lost to World of Warcraft, for instance? How many great minds could have developed if they weren’t glued to the X-box?

We’ll never know, but I’m sure it’s more than a few. So in a way, I guess that does lend some credence to EA being a terrible company, but it’s due more to the effects of the products they produce than the way they market or distribute those products.

Identifying yourself as a gamer is no different than identifying yourself as a homeowner. It’s not basing your entire identity around that one aspect. It’s simply describing an aspect of your whole. Saying you’re a gamer is like saying you like to spend some of your free time playing games; it doesn’t mean you spend every waking non-working moment playing games and trolling game sites. Saying you’re a homeowner is like saying you have a home that you own, and you have to spend some time/effort maintaining, but it doesn’t mean that 100% of your free time is spent fixing/upgrading your home and worrying about your home.

TL;DR Identifying as a gamer is not shameful, and is similar to identifying as a homeowner.

Agreed on all counts. Well, except I do consider myself a gamer…I consider myself a lot of other things as well. I am a guitarist as well…I guess I just thought it odd that you shirk an accurate label. People can wear many different labels. That being said, gamers treating these products as necessities gives companies all the leeway they need (and more!) to continue to push the boundaries of abusing customers.
As I mentioned in an earlier article, I feel confident in saying that EA could implement a coerced dick harvesting campaign, and people would still be lined up for whatever the next big release was. I imagine there would even be people defending the dick harvesting campaign with things like “Well now that I can’t masturbate, I have a new level of focus and my game has really gone to the next level!” Obviously this is hyperbolic, as a dick harvesting campaign would be difficult for EA to monetize properly, but I think it serves in making the point that gamers will take nearly any amount of abuse only to respond with cash in hand and asking for more. It’s embarrassing.

I concur. The people saying things like “so, you didn’t like the ending of a game”, have absolutely no idea what EA has been doing for the last 1-2 years. Lives destroyed. Jobs lost. IP’s destroyed. It’s like they are on the frontier of a new “anti-consumer” tsunami, leading the way for other companies to obliterate consumer rights.

Meanwhile, many people talk about “optional games”. Sure…buying a house is optional, as well as a car. There are 100 banks you could put your money into.

I’m not saying BofA didn’t deserve the golden poo too..it was like a 49/51 vote in my mind, but EA just edged them out with absolutely terrible anti consumer polices, leading the way for those policies to spread through an entire industry that makes more money than Hollywood.

I’m not arguing that. But because many people here and in general think they aren’t important *at all* EA is allowed to abuse their customers and employees, has no federal oversight allowing them to buy out any of its competitors, and basically is slowly destroying a $65 billion industry.

and to some consumers, gaming is more important than a mortgage. Maybe they’re young, maybe they’ve completely paid their mortgage, etc. Something to keep in mind.

Ok gamers you win…
Now really make your voices heard by passing on Madden 13, MLB2K13, NBA2K13, Mass Effect DLC, DLC for BF3… Maybe then EA will start giving a damn about their product or the opinion of their customers.

Finally, a post that express the real sadness here. Most people who despise BofA will actively avoid it and boycott it if possible. But the people all antsy in the pantsy about EA STILL SUPPORT THE COMPANY.. for god sakes people, if you don’t like EA’s actions, don’t buy the next MADDEN game.. (or make sure to steal it..)

Still, its a golden turd. Both companies deserve our scorn, apparently.. and the more attention this fracas gets in media beyond this little corner of the internet then the more win for bringing to light just how anti-consumer they both are.

though i do agree more light should be shed on companies like Monsanto.. but thats for next year i guess.

Bank of America is terrible, everyone can agree. But that horse has been beaten to a bloody pulp and then beaten some more over the past several years. Has complaining achieved anything? Has anyone intervened to correct their practices? Chalk this up to ‘berating weariness’. Time for a new contender even if it’s only over their “recent” decisions. Spread the hatred and anger, folks.

As I have said all along. Complaining does nothing. Take your money out of BofA or any of the big banks and put it in a credit union or small local bank. I wonder how many of the people who voted for BofA do business with them. Idiot stick Americans.

Electronic Arts winning the Golden Poo just shows the self-centered priorities
and lack of general awareness of what is happening between consumers and
those that “handle” our money/investments, hold our mortgages, etc all of
which they are going pretty much at an epic fail level which has had and will
have end-of-days US and global consequences. I really thought the posters
here were pretty smart and hip to the real evil that is out there in business land.

But to compare B of A which is a trillion-dollar global wealth overlord with an
albeit poorly performing game company is just beyond comprehension for any
intelligent person.

This WCIA proves its worthlessness and begs the question: Why aren’t there some
real metrics that would quality a company even getting a spot on the brackets??

Like, oh, maybe, how many hundreds of thousands of people there are without
their home because of B of A? Not to mention, their other incompetence or illegal
practices, ginormously overpaid board members and CEO (this all applied to other
banking/investment firms as well of course) and the list goes on.

Consumerist moderators, I implore to make some changes for next time that will
actually (based on various general metrics of “badness”) give us a shot at actually
seeing an outcome that makes sense.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

I’m surprised with what people are complaining about. BofA may be pretty bad, but not all voters are customers of BofA, nor are they always americans. I’m a Canadian, and I voted for EA, because I’ve only ever dealt with them. Maybe people should realize that non-americans can also vote here.

To all the people complaining that BofA is by definition worse because it supplies something they consider essential, I ask to you: “So what?”. This is not the “Worst Company that Provides an Essential Sevice in America” Contest. It’s the “Worst Company in America” Contest. In this case, EA was considered worse.

When the bank ruins your life at least you have the last bastion of hope that comes through sharing a good movie or game with your loved ones. EA seems to have despoiled that very last bit of hope.

A video game company will never top the ruin that is brought on to society as a bank would, everyone knows that. Industry aside, this was a contest for worst COMPANY in America regardless of their trade.

I’m sorry but the fact that EA won out over BoA goes to show how un-intelligent a lot of voters are or the fact that they are children. How could anyone possibly put a game company as the worst company in america over a bank that has proven time and time again that it cannot be trusted with peoples’ hard earned money. BoA screws up peoples’ lives with messed up foreclosure proceedings, take peoples’ homes away who are not behind on mortgage payments and want to charge you money to access your OWN money. The list goes on and on. I’m sorry but, EA should not have won. I know there is a point made in the paragraph about people who make comments just like the one that I made but, just because one makes the point I made does not mean one would forget and point out how f’d up EA also is. I’m just saying that the problems BoA have caused is infinitely more important then a game company. BoA has the power and has screwed up peoples’ lives in the worst way, EA can’t do that. There has to be some prioritization and in this case there wasn’t.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

I’m sorry for your loss, but unless that acquisition and subsequent wave of layoffs makes a noticeable difference in the national unemployment rate, or even the state one, it’s nowhere near in the same class as what BoA does year in and year out.

I too am surprised that EA won this. Not because they aren’t a spawn of evil but that BofA does have more direct and damaging influence in peoples lives – mine included. But, I remind myself that most of the bad press (not all) about BofA has been the previous years. I don’t know if that has any affect on the vote but is something to consider.

I would guess that EA winning also has to do with the fact that gamers are so well connected. Every online game has chat functions so it was easier to spread the word about this vote.

As to saying this was an unfair or unjust vote because some people were new posters is not correct either. Just because gamers are so well connected should not impact the process that the Consumerist has set down. If all the people that use BofA had a easy way to spread the word about this contest, would that invalidate the results if BofA had won?

I don’t get why people are so upset about EA winning. Ok, so you think BofA should’ve won. They didn’t. Why is it so hard to accept that? Did you vote? Yes? Then you did your part. That’s all you can do. You say owning games is a luxury. So is your house. Yes, BoA has done some evil things, but they didn’t win. EA is screwing gamers, but apparently nope! Can’t vote for them. EA can’t win.

Nobody’s holding a gun to your head and making you come here. Accept it and move on, or leave. Quite simple.

Sad. WCIA has officially gotten too big to have open voting reliably anymore, as sites like Kotaku can drive their vocal, entitled readership to run up the score. Been following WCIA for several years, but unless voting changes I think it’s had its run.

I don’t necessarily disagree with the overall sentiment of your comment, but where the hell do you get that Kotaku readers are “entitled”? That baseless comment would seem to undermine any legitimate point you might have otherwise made.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

it is true that they hold back content for dlc, for example some expansion packs/ dlc that will add an extra character. In the initial release of the game you will notice sound files for dialog, and config and save hex entries for the dlc, this means that for most games, the dlc is either already made or already planned but did not fully include in the game in order to profit.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

What a lot of people seem to forget is that gamers are consumerists as well. We deal with the mistreatment of the game companies just as much as someone who deals with a bank does.

Does the banking system ruin lives? Yea it does. But you can always choose not to bank with them. Go to a credit union or another bank. I have been on a credit union for years and love it. No one is forcing you to bank with BoA. And lets all be honest, we already know the bank sucks. Why remind them.

EA however, is slightly different. Like a game series? Great! Buy it, play the game, be happy. However, the studio that made that game you love so much? Welp they just got bought out by EA, most of the team got laid off, and now EA owns all rights to that franchise and are driving it into the groun. You now must give up the game because the servers have been shut down because game 2.0 came out and that has locked content that you need to pay for on top of what you already payed for.

I’m not going to try and say that games are more important than your financial livelihood, but this is a company that is treating its paying customers horribly. This just goes to show that the gaming public has a voice, and they want to be heard.

I really think it’s because EA is a gaming company that so many people have an issue with these results. If any other company, like a bank or a cell phone company were doing what EA is doing, there would be an uproar of epic proportions.

People who are upset over the result because “it’s just a games company” are really missing the bigger picture.

It’s like giving fast food a free pass for using the much abhorred “pink slime” because after all, it’s “just fast food.” But if that “pink slime” made it into the meat aisle at your local grocer, there would be pitchforks and torches a plenty.

But why? It’s the same crime, it’s just that one does not affect you because its not a market you might take part in (and actually are pretty smug and feeling superior not consuming in that market) and the other does affect you.

Except that the stuff has been in local groceries, for years, and it’s just now getting attention because of a video that, not to put too fine a point on it, made the stuff look like bright pink excrement. The old saying about sausages and politics applies; in fact, I think that vegetarianism and veganism in the United States would skyrocket if someone smuggled out a high-definition video from an industrial abbatoir.

Even as someone who has been seriously disappointed by some (but by no means all) aspects of Mass Effect 3, this result makes me deeply sad. I’m going to pretend that, as one commenter hinted, the poll was bombed by disgruntled fanboys, and will suggest that if Consumerist wants to maintain its reputation in the future, they should restrict voting to people who have been registered for at least one year so that Tom Batiuk doesn’t end up getting it because people didn’t like a recent plot development in Funky Winkerbean.

It’s beyond ridiculous. Many people became homeless or destitute through the involvement of Bank of America’s practices. Talking about EA’s shady practices is one thing; rating that problem as worse than that of BoA is 100% absolute nonsense. consumerist continues to drop the ball with this annual poll, to the point that it’s worse than meaningless.

At least bundle companies into relevant service tracks. There shouldn’t be ‘ATT vs. Quiznos’ votes.

Last I checked, all they did was supply the names and the means for people to vote. If you have some evidence they tampered with the outcome of the polls, then please share with the rest of the boys and girls.

This is all about what the majority thinks is the worse company, and just because it doesn’t comply with your opinion doesn’t make it any less significant.

Never underestimate the vendetta of gamers and the internet. This is a huge “FU” to EA from gamers.

That being said, BoA is by far a worse company, as are many others that ran. BoA destroys lives. I don’t think any one has ever died because of EA, but I’m sure BoA has led to numerous suicides. Hell, BoA took part in destroying the entire economy. You can’t get worse than BoA.

BoA still placed 2nd, they still get metal poo. They are still very much recognized for their significant achievement.

We should all be upset because many many corporations deserve to share the WCIA #1 spot. Companies like last years winner like BP for destroying the Gulf of Mexico as well as every other oil profiting company since they destroy the environment in order to produce oil (its Standard Operating Procedure), communications companies like (but not limited to) At&t, Comcast, Verizon for their lobbying to ruin the internet and extreme willingness to sell us out to the government (and now *AA’s) and ignore the constitution at our expense (whats the 4th amendment again?), banks like (but not limited to) BoA for their insane insatiable greed, and don’t forget Wall Street- why the hell is no one crying foul about the lack of wall street’s numerous douchebag’s on here? What, BoA voters, you claim to know who is the ultimate bad here yet I see no mention of BoA’s partners in crime anywhere. Just to name a few.

You guys need to get off your high horses. You’ve failed on so many counts to hold companies responsible for their actions and this is yet one more failure on your part. Wasting time complaining that BoA got 2nd instead of 1st shows how little you actually know and value. So many of you picked BoA for some superficial, popular, no thought required reason. Had any of you actually been informed, rather than just in some stupid mob mentality, BoA would have been tied with several of the companies I’ve mentioned for 1st.

It appears to me as if the gamers have stuffed the ballot box – I am a gamer, I learned a long time ago NOT to get any EA games. I do not own any EA games. I do not buy any EA games for my grandchildren (yes I am an OLD gamer) EA is easy to deal with. Just don’t buy their crap and they will not even be a part of your life.

BoA on the other hand doesn’t care if you are a customer or not. They will STILL come in and make your life a living hell while ignoring your letters and calls. Then when finally called out by someone with the ability to get their attention, “Oh, we made a little mistake – sorry.” And that is supposed to be the end of it. If it cost you money, your home, your credit score or anything else – you will have to hire a lawyer (more money) and sue them to get anything. That can take years. And you will likely settle for far less than you think you deserve – because if you don’t, they get to keep harassing you until you give in. You will never recover your peace of mind that was stolen by their “accidental little goof”.

A bank that literally holds your ability to live your life in its hands, that has a history of ruining people’s entire lives, and even reaching out and ruining the lives of people who have never done business with the bank at all ends up with a lower vote tally than a company that sells games?

Wow. Apparently quite a few people need to get their priorities right. Because if that’s how priorities actually run, no wonder we’re in a financial crisis.

Well, I’m sorry BoA didn’t get the Golden Poo, but I’m glad they at least are Silver. AT&T getting Bronze Poo made my day. LOL I’ll be sure to congratulate them the next time I have to call tech support.

EA’s evil business practices didn’t have the far-reaching effects that BoA’s did, but I guess they set a bad enough precedent that they deserve it. Too bad the awards don’t motivate these companies to change anything.

Don’t like the company? Don’t buy their games. Game buyers should blame themselves more than EA. EA is doing what it’s supposed to: earning the best return on investment it can. Stop whining: they’re not your mother.

Congrats to EA, this year’s Sin-derella Worst Company in America. I didn’t vote for them, but let’s face it, it’s a dishonor just to be nominated. Each and every company in the bracket should be ashamed of themselves, and take whatever steps are necessary not to repeat.

This is the best thing ever and a long time coming. From buying and shuttering my favorite game developers, to boycotting Xbox Live until they were allowed to use their own servers so they could bombard their players inboxes with spam and other unwanted marketing, to the crown jewel of poo that is Origin. This company is horrible. And yes EA exec, I “get” Origin. And I still HATE IT!

You are potentially the most condescending idiot I’ve met in the past week, and I work in an office full of condescending idiots.

You’re not even TRYING to understand the issues. You’re handwaving, saying “THIS ISN’T IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT’S JUST SOME STUPID HOBBY.” It’s a hobby that’s important to a lot of us; we grew up with it, it shaped us, moved us, touched us. It is important to US; your failure to transfer money to another bank is not. And EA is destroying the games industry, they’re twisting it into something awful, a twisted nightmare of what it used to be. I could probably name about a hundred reasons why EA deserves this award.

Maybe BoA deserved it more, but at least with BoA you can just choose not to patronize them. Not patronizing EA does nothing; they’re still setting trends in the games industry that have the potential to ruin it permanently. And the worst part is, it’s something that gets very, very little recognition. They’re corrupting our childhood and nobody gives a crap (except, literally, the Consumerist). Everybody already knows BoA is crap; this isn’t anything new. EA getting the “award” at least gets the problem some recognition.

But by all means, hand-wave it away because it’s not something that matters to you.

Agreed this is disappointing, and not a deserved “honor” for EA, though they do suck. I think an influx of disgruntled gamers skewed the vote.

BUT for those of you upset that super evil BofA didn’t win, let’s keep some perspective. Yes they do some consumer unfriendly crap. However, if you’re hating on them due to their role in the subprime mortgage fiasco, you should know they were hardly the worst offender. Besides, that was a systemic failure, not attributable to any one bank.

Oh yeah, if Bank of America won a poll on the internet, surely all of the atrocities they’ve committed would have been magically fixed! We get it, you’re upset that your meaningless vote got outweighed by other meaningless votes.

I work in the games industry, and gamers need to inform themselves a bit. EA won this contest because they are being blamed for the death of smaller game studios and trend of adding paid DLC to a game you already paid for.

However the gamers have no one to blame but themselves for this. They demand so much from video game developers that the cost of making video games has skyrocketed into ridiculous proportions requiring full-blown movie studio levels of production staff and budgets. Watch the credits for any current triple-A game title and see for yourself. Meanwhile the price of games at the store haven’t changed much, and have actually gone down if you adjust for inflation.

Any attempt by the game developer to turn a profit larger than what is needed to recoup their development costs is instantly seen as evil by the game community. Yet then the game community wonders why their favorite developers get eaten up by the companies like EA who is one of the few publishers in the industry capable of bankrolling the development of a brand new game from scratch. Their favorite “not evil” developer may have recouped their costs but has no additional funds to start a new game, thus needs to look to an investor like EA or Activision to pay their bills.

That’s the reality, and while EA may not have the best business practices in the industry, they are pretty much on par with any larger corporation in any other industry. The difference here is that in the games industry you have a community with a much larger proportion of people who don’t quite understand how the world works yet.

EA’s draconian DRM methods earned them this award. First, they implement a computer crashing version of SecuROM in the PC game Spore, which lead to The Pirate Bay’s Boston Tea Party style protest of the Spore SecuROM DRM. A SecuROM free version of Spore was the number 1 downloaded PC game on The Pirate Bay for 12 weeks. Now, EA wants to implement “phone home” DRM, which makes you have to have an internet connection at all times if you want to play the game. If I want to play a game on a 6 hour cross country flight, I will have to pay the $13.95 fee to access the plane’s in flight wi-fi internet access or it won’t work. Screw EA!

Seriously? BOA has destroyed credit, which in effect can destroy a person’s ability to get a job, they’ve repo’d homes which do not belong to them and thrown the owner’s belongings in the city dump (keeping the best stuff for themselves), they pay zip taxes. So, EA’s messed with entertainment, big whoop. The folks BOA have screwed up often don’t have jobs to pay for games or homes to play them in.

They also won this the past two times. We get it, BoA sucks. Don’t bank with them and you won’t have to deal with them.

Problem is, you have to deal with EA if you’re a gamer whether you buy from them or not. They’re big so smaller companies copy them, and that means their horrible business practices become prevalent throughout the gaming industry. They’re like a virus.

I don’t get this either. BoA actively does evil and dishonesty. EA simply does greed, but is entirely optional. Had their customers actively rejected the nickel-and-dime DLC, it would have stopped. If they reject it now, it will stop.

Gamers ARE idiots. Go on some videogame message boards and find a post about video game prices. You will find dozens of posters who will say they’ll pay anything for a game. They are happy to be ripped off. They will bring out bogus inflation figures and videogame budgets to convince you. I want to believe many are videogame company spokespeople, but I’m pretty good at sniffing any sort of shill out. The sad thing is, the industry would probably be a lot more mainstream if it brought their prices down.

The book industry is just as bad, and clueless. Barnes and Noble is a joke. The e-book and e-magazine business is ridiculously overpriced. They just don’t get it.

@Calidore, you embrace the sort of short-term thinking that plagues corporate America. No, they don’t get it, and it will hurt them in the long run. EA and the entire gaming industry is long overdue for a meeting with the DOJ.

I’m not “embracing” anything, just pointing out that the same short-term thinking that plagues corporate America also plagues the consumer side. Just as corporations hurt themselves looking for instant profits, consumers do the same thing looking for instant gratification and buying into fads. Corporations and consumers are all just people, so the same weaknesses apply.

Should have a Lifetime “Achievement” Award every year for BOA. They deserve the poo every year, I’m shocked that EA beat them, likely just because BOA is so very very obvious.
So the Golden Poo voted on and then maybe the Golden Garbage for BOA?

Yeah, no way hackers could have stuffed the ballets. I had no trouble voting multiple times using different browsers. I wonder if consumerist checks IP addresses, or if they only check browser cookies.
If somebody had the time and no life, it wouldn’t be hard to write a script to vote a huge number of times.

Which type of consumer do you think is more likely to have such scripting skills? The gamer, or the home owner?

Take my money, destroy the U.S. economy but don’t you dare mess with my video gaming experience. Now maybe everyone can understand how America is messed up. Pretty clear we have our priorities a little skewed. I actually think the Consumerist should follow Keith Olberman’s “Worst Person in the World” approach with the worst company. Everyday is worst company day at the Consumerist. Maybe someone should keep a tally of how many posts for each company. I guess if you did that BofA would have been the clear winner.

Anyone who voted for EA knows nothing about the games industry since about 2004. EA turned over a new leaf and did everything in there power to do good by funding indie games, creating new IPs, treating there staff correctly and have suffered as a result with there stock and profits the lowest they have been in a while.

Lets kick them while they are down true evil companys like Zynga and Activision are worse then EA have ever been.

Activision screwed over Infinity Ward after creating the Call of Duty Franchise and Screwed over Harmonix after they created the Guitar Hero franchise.

The Activison CEO publicly and proudly states his job is to remove the fun out of making games for his employees and to create “a company culture infused with skepticism, pessimism, and fear.”

For shame. Just just reflects how out of touch both the Consumerist and its audience are with the real world.

It is the additon of call of duty players in to battlefield they are mad that battlefield is killing call of duty and it will not become call of duty so they vote ea as worst company in america i am a gamer who voted BoA as worst company bbut the call of duty brats win again

I view this as appropriate in the same way that Roger Ebert reviews movies on their own merits relative to their genre and what they’re trying to do. He doesn’t judge a kids’ movie against oscar-bait dramas. If a dumb action movie is a good dumb action movie, he’ll give it a good review.

EB may not be world-shatteringly awful like the big banks. EB may not have killed anyone like the big banks absolutely have. But looking at EB versus other big game companies…they’re up against companies like Nintendo and Valve. Bank of America is up against Chase and Wells Fargo. They aren’t defying any expectations.